The present invention relates to a protective apparatus for a roadway marker, and in particular, to an anchoring means for a protective apparatus for a roadway marker.
Protective apparatuses for roadway markers may be secured to a road by simply applying an adhesive between a bottom surface of the protective apparatus and an upper surface of the road as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,618,281 to Ajemian. Alternately, the protective apparatus may be provided with an anchoring system in the form of a base member which is embedded in the road and anchors the protective apparatus to the road. Traditionally, the base members are downwardly depending arcuate ribs as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,587,416 to Flanagan, U.S. Pat. No. 4,174,184 to Heenan and U.S. Pat. No. 6,116,812 to Hedgewick. Arcuate slots corresponding to the arcuate curvature of the base members are cut into the road and filled with an adhesive. The base members are inserted into the slots and the strength of the adhesive serves to anchor the protective apparatus to the road.
The dependency on the strength of the adhesive leaves these traditional anchoring means exposed to failure. Any defects in terms of either the consistency of the adhesive itself or any defects in the application of the adhesive to the base member may result in an inadequately anchored protective apparatus. The occurrence of inadequately anchored protective apparatuses may lead to higher road-maintenance costs, as both the protective apparatuses and their associated roadway markers may be damaged. It follows that increased roadway marker damage results in poor lane differentiation and thus more dangerous roads, putting public safety at risk. There is therefore a need for a more effective anchoring means for securing protective apparatuses for roadway markers to the road.